We had a busy August!
This month, Jacquie has been distributing sensory kits to nonprofits and agencies across the Greater Austin area that support Autistic children and adults. So far, kits have been provided to Brady’s Bridge, VELA, and a couple of Local Intellectual and Developmental Disability Authorities (LIDDAs). We also provided kits to both the Austin Police Department (APD) and Austin Fire Department (AFD) during a Community Outreach Day hosted by APD earlier this year! Each kit includes noise-reducing headphones, fidget toys, sunglasses, and stickers — all thoughtfully chosen to support sensory regulation. We’ve heard from both parents and Autistic adults that having a bag labeled “Autism Society” has helped increase acceptance and understanding in public settings, especially during challenging moments. We’d like to give a heartfelt thank you to our incredible community partners who made the Sensory Kit Program possible! A huge thank you to the Atlas Project, whose generous fundraising efforts made it possible for us to provide these kits at no cost. We’re also deeply grateful to Project Genius for donating warehouse space to store the kits, and to Greenleaf NCC, where Autistic adult participants carefully assembled each one with care and intention while working at Project Genius! Thanks to the support of these amazing organizations, we’re creating moments of comfort, spreading acceptance, and strengthening connections across our community.
On August 20, Jacquie presented to the incoming 2025–2026 LEND cohort, alongside several Central Texas organizations that serve individuals with disabilities. She shared how AST supports the autism community through education, advocacy, and resources. Each year, AST also provides training to the LEND cohort on how the Texas legislative session works—and how to effectively advocate for policy change that benefits the disability community. ACT LEND is a 9-month leadership training program for graduate students, family members, and self-advocates. It combines hands-on experience, interdisciplinary learning, and mentorship to build future leaders in the fields of autism and developmental disabilities. We’re proud to support ACT LEND and look forward to continuing this meaningful partnership!
On August 21 we had our SATS presentation, “ABA for Teens and Adults: Skills for Lifelong Learning”, where we dove into the benefits of ABA across the lifespan. Thank you so much to our presenters: AST Board President, Rany Thommen Moser, M.Ed., BCBA, LBA, Dr. Laura Estep-Assistant Professor of Practice, Dept. of Special Education at UT Austin and Clinical Director at ASPIRE, and Jessica Quintanilla, BCBA, LBA from Central Texas Autism Center.